Bank of Ireland non-resident account: Understand how it works

If you’re a non-resident living, working or visiting Ireland you might find yourself wanting an Irish bank account. Doing this can be a little tricky but there are banks and financial providers out there that do allow foreigners to open a Euro account.

In this article we’ll take a look at the process for opening a Personal Current Account with the Bank of Ireland as a non-resident including what documents you'll need and the associated fees.

We’ll also introduce you to the Wise Account. Wise is an excellent alternative e-money service provider that offers local account details for 10 currencies, including the Euro, and also allows you to hold and manage more than 50 currencies.

Discover the Wise Account 🌏

Bank of Ireland non-resident account: How does it work?

🔎 The Bank of Ireland doesn’t have a special account for non-residents.⁵ Instead they allow non-residents to open a standard Personal Current Account based on slightly different documentation than residents need to provide.¹

Here’s some of the features of this account:

• Visa Debit card
• An agreed overdraft amount
• Online, mobile and telephone banking
• Access to the Bank of Ireland ATM and branch network
• Able to make foreign currency payments

How to open a non-resident account with Bank of Ireland

When opening a Bank of Ireland account as a non-resident you’ll need to provide certified copies of the required documents with your application.¹

If you plan to continue living abroad rather than moving to Ireland you’ll need to apply over the phone between 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday.

• 0818 354 454 within the Republic of Ireland
• +353 1 4044034 from abroad

What documents do I need to open the account?

To open a Bank of Ireland account as a non-resident you’ll need to provide two proofs of photo ID and one proof of address.¹

1️⃣ Generally your drivers licence and passport are acceptable as proof of ID.

2️⃣ For your proof of address you’ll need to provide a household bill such as the electricity, water, gas or landline phone bill.¹ Keep in mind the Bank of Ireland doesn’t accept mobile phone bills.

Once you have your documents you’ll need to get scanned copies and have them certified by a solicitor or police officer.¹ If the bill isn’t in English you’ll also need to get it translated.

Country restrictions apply. Visit wise.com/ie for more information.

What are the costs of the BOI non-resident account?

The cost of having a Personal Current Account with Bank of Ireland is the same for residents and non-residents.⁵

Here’s a look at some of the main fees for a Bank of Ireland Personal Current Account, with the Wise Account included for comparison.

Service	Bank of Ireland³	Wise Account⁶
Account maintenance fee	€6 monthly fee	No fee
Foreign currency card transactions	2% (Max. €11.43) + cost of foreign currency exchange	No fee if you have the currency in your account. If not, conversion fee from 0.41% (depending on the currency)
Foreign currency ATM withdrawals	3.5% (Min. €3.17 & Max. €11.43) + cost of foreign currency exchange	Withdraw €200 per month in 2 or less withdrawals for free.⁷ Above this there’s a fee of 1.75% + €0.50
International transfers	Euro transfers to IBAN/BIC accounts in the UK or EEA cost €0.50 when the fee isn’t being waived. All other euro payments cost 1% (Min. €17.75 & Max. €50). Foreign currency transfers are 0.2% (Min. €12.50 & Max. €50) + foreign exchange margin. ⁴	Euro transfers are free from the EUR Balance. Foreign currency transfers have a fixed fee + variable conversion fee starting from 0.41%. You'll always get the mid-market rate for conversions.

Wise: Manage than 50 currencies in one account

Earlier we mentioned the Wise Account so here’s what you need to know. Wise is an international payments specialist that’s authorised to provide financial services in Ireland.

With a Wise Account you can hold over 50 currencies, send money to more than 70 countries and receive money in 10 currencies with local account details, including Euro, British pound, US dollar and other currencies.

If you need to change between your home currency and the Euro, Wise can take care of this without hidden fees to worry about. You'll always get the mid-market rate (the same you see on Google) when exchanging money and you’ll know what it costs up front, before you make the transfer:

If you have a Wise Account you can also get access to the Wise debit card which makes daily spending in more than 50 currencies simple.

If you have the local currency in your Wise Account the card will use it and charge no fees. If you don’t, it uses smart technology to auto-convert your Balance at the mid-market rate, for a small fee. You can check all the Wise card costs online.

To see how a Wise Account could benefit you, why not take a look for yourself? There are no monthly account fees to worry about and opening an account is free.⁸

Open your Wise Account
today 🚀

🔎 For more details on this provider, you may check our articles:
Bank of Ireland international transfer Bank of Ireland exchange rate Bank of Ireland Student Account

Sources used:

1. Bank of Ireland - How to open a non-resident account
2. Bank of Ireland - Personal current account
3. Bank of Ireland - Schedule of Fees and Charges for Personal Customers
4. Bank of Ireland - Schedule of International transaction charges
5. Confirmed via Bank of Ireland Customer Support on 12/01/2023
6. Please see Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise Fees & Pricing: Only Pay for What You Use for the most up to date pricing and fee information
7. Wise will not charge you for these withdrawals, but some additional charges may occur from independent ATM networks.
8. Eligibility is subject to verification of customers identity

Sources last checked on date: 9 January 2023